Madam, - As was feared, one reaction to the Irish Ferries dispute over displacement, outsourcing, "yellow-pack workers" and the "race to the bottom" has come to the fore. Many politicians, union officials and workers spoke out at the time against any attempts to divide and rule workers, regardless of their country of origin.
However, now, in a Blair-like "New Labour" move, Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte has put in a strong bid to steal the clothes of the right with his latest outburst on work permits. I speak as just one of thousands of political activists who neither trust nor agree with Pat Rabbitte, and who hate the path he is leading his party down - to an alliance with Fine Gael.
Is the Labour Party suggesting that the 100,000 Polish workers here go home and wait until they get a work permit before coming back? The work permit system gives great power to employers because only they can renew a permit and they can revoke a permit at any time. So any worker who questions his or her pay and conditions can be sent packing, left on the streets to starve, or having to resort to illegal activity to survive if not entitled to social welfare because of our discriminatory legislation.
The apparent reforms that Michael McDowell is introducing in his latest immigration bill are a fake solution to the permit problem. In reality they will mean that although workers will technically hold their own permit, they will still need to have an employer sponsor it. Query your entitlements and you can be labelled "unsuitable".
Mr Rabbitte's comments are a total disgrace to true left-wing politics, but they do reflect a sentiment that is likely to come from some union leaders. As the pace of globalisation speeds up, these union leaders dream about a corporatist economy where the state offers protection to workers in response to a union embrace of business unionism. Instead of a real campaign to unionise vast numbers of workers, Irish and migrants alike, they want the state to restrict workers' movement, thus enabling employers to use and discard workers at will. It is utterly disgusting.
The only answer to displacement and outsourcing is for unions to champion the cause of all workers equally, Irish and migrants. The most successful union in the world at the moment is the SEIU in the US, which has doubled its membership. The SEIU knows it has to organise to make its members' voices heard. It campaigns for all members, including migrants, unionises the undocumented - and shows that it can fight.
Now is the time for trade unionists here to chart a bold new course and spark a labour movement to fight for workers in the world economy. - Yours, etc,
DETTE McLOUGHLIN,
Socialist Workers Party,
Galway.